Friday, February 27, 2009

A "Reckoning" Amid the Wreckage

Space Keynesianism: All hail the grand architects of our renewed prosperity, Ben Bernanke (nearest to the nosecone) and Tim Geithner (straddling a fin), who for some reason decided to bring along Henry Paulson (clinging to the underside of the rocket).

"At this very moment, the President of the United States is announcing a New Age of Space to relieve unemployment. Billions of dollars are going to be spent on unmanned space ships, just to make work. The opening episode in this New Age of Space will be the firing of the Whale next Tuesday. The Whale ... will be loaded with organ-grinder monkeys, and will be fired in the general direction of Mars."

If the secret to prosperity is simply to permit the government to spend money it doesn't have in any quantity our rulers can name on any project that pollutes their evil imaginations, why shouldn't they commission the construction of a huge fleet of spacecraft to be filled with organ-grinder monkeys and dispatched into the void?

Or why not emulate the ancient Egyptians under the tyrant Cheops by commissioning an immense mausoleum to stand in eternal testimony of our bold and visionary ruler, Pharaoh Obama the First?

According to Herodotus, Cheops achieved full employment by enlisting nearly the entire population to build his legendary pyramid -- but this was done by depleting the treasury so thoroughly that the ruler had to sell his own daughter into slavery to raise the funds for some forgettable and long-effaced bit of decorative filigree.

The same ancient historian observes that for centuries after Cheops died, the Egyptians refused so much as to utter his name (or that of his equally despicable brother, Chefren), so reviled had he become on account of his tyrannical profligacy.

Pointless expenditures on space exploration or construction of monuments to the vanity of the ruling class would actually make more sense than the Regime's present course, which is to ruin the currency in a doomed effort to save a failing and terminally insolvent banking system.

When budgets and annual deficits go hyperbolic, hyperinflation is sure to follow. But the cruelly amusing fact is that neither Obama nor the gallery of trained seals called Congress is in charge of the public purse.

Sure, Obama can propose a budget and Congress can ratify it on a party-line vote, but the real economic power now resides with the Commissar for Official Counterfeiting, Ben Bernanke, and the Commissar for Fiscal Fraud, Tim Geithner.

Obama is seeking to salve the electorate's economic wounds with oleaginous words about hope, change, and determination. Meanwhile, Geithner -- as pure a product of the bankster elite as ever drew an undeserved breath -- is "finishing touches on a plan that will dump $1 trillion of toxic assets on the US taxpayer," warns Mike Whitney of CounterPunch. "The plan, which goes by the opaque moniker [of] the `Public-Private Investment Fund' (PPIF), is designed to provide lavish incentives to hedge funds and private equity funds to purchase bad assets from failing banks. It is a sweetheart deal that that provides government financing and guarantees for illiquid mortgage-backed junk for which there is no active market."

There is other mischief afoot behind the obscuring barricade of official acronyms.

First came TARP (Troubled Assets Relief Program), which was supposedly intended to buy up bad mortgage-backed securities, but in practice was an open-ended conduit of funding to prop up any corrupt financial institution of the Treasury Secretary's choice.

Now we confront the Fed's Term Asset-Backed Securities Loan Facility (TALF), which will open for business in a few days. TALF will provide another $1 trillion to finance the purchase of securities backed by new classes of failing loans -- credit cards, auto loans, small-business loans. We can expect TALF, like TARP, to gain considerable girth as the depression deepens.

The same is true of the PPIF, which was created by the Fed and the Treasury Department on their own supposed authority without specific congressional authorization. (Remember, TARP removed Congress from this equation.) That new "public-private partnership" -- a euphemism for a corporatist, which is to say fascist, entity -- amounts to what financial analyst Kevin G. Hall calls "a blank check to ensure that the top banks -- those with assets over $100 billion -- remain solvent."

Beginning in late April, as Hall explains, squads of federal regulators will start administering "stress tests" to the 19 largest banks. Those found to be "under-capitalized" will be given six months either to raise capital in private markets, or to "ask for a capital buffer from the government."

The PPIF begins with a ridiculously low credit pool of $500 billion, with a provision to expand immediately to $1 trillion. But as Hall says, the program is, in principle, "a virtually unlimited solvency guarantee" to the nation's 19 largest banks. This means that it could keep pouring "liquidity" -- that is, inflation-debauched dollars -- into the banking system until the Fed runs out of zeroes.

This is where the really bloody business of butchering the middle class is taking place. Apart from occasional fits of televised grousing, Congress has no role in the process, having abdicated its constitutional control over public expenditures to the Treasury Department last September.

So when Obama the Munificient, framed -- appropriately enough -- by the fasces that decorate the wall in the well of the House of Representatives, invited Congress to gorge itself on a new menu of spending programs, this gesture was a bit like conferring a consolation prize on the second-place finisher in a two-man competition.

As he sketched, in vague outline, a campaign to enlarge what is already the largest and most expensive government in human history, His Holiness Obama the Blessed declared: "I do not believe in bigger government."

That odd and discordant sentence begs the question, bigger than what? A reasonable surmise would be that Obama meant something along the lines of the following: "I believe in a government somewhat bigger than Betelgeuse, but no bigger than Antares."

"[Obama] laid out the most ambitious and expensive domestic agenda of any Democratic President since LBJ, and did it so smoothly that you'd think he was just selling an incremental center-left pragmatism. I think that he has an acute sense - more acute than most people in Washington, probably - of just how much running room is open in front of him at the moment, and he intends to make the absolute most of it... It was the speech of a man seeking to turn a moment of crisis into a domestic-policy revolution.... Now all he has to do is find a way to pay for it."

Hey, no problem: Obama can always whip out his Presidential Express Card (neither Gold nor Platinum being sufficiently rare and precious to provide the required cachet, Obama's is a Moonrock Card, with an astronomical spending limit). As long as Geithner and his minions can sell Treasury Debt, the government can keep the party going.

"Brother, can you spare ... a million?" Zimbabwe's hyperinflation is on display in the incredible prices charged by this street vendor for his sweets and baubles. Yes, "M" stands for "million" in Zimbabwean dollars.

And when foreigners decide to dump their T-bills, and Bernanke sends his printing presses into hyperdrive, we'll have the opportunity to experience all the romance and enchantment of distant, exotic Zimbabwe -- without leaving the comfort of our own homes. This assumes that any of us still has a home by then.

Obama's speech to Congress, while heavy on facile uplift and melodrama, was almost entirely devoid of humor. I must admit that the speech managed to wrench one bitter chuckle from me when Obama announced that a "Day of Reckoning" had arrived.

That phrase would make sense if the government over which Obama presides were to permit the market to function. This would mean mass liquidation of bad assets and, yes, continued and deepening deflation. It would mean the immediate end to two foreign wars and rolling up the infrastructure of Washington's global empire. It would hurt like hell for a few years, and then recovery would begin.

What Obama apparently meant by "Day of Reckoning," however, was something along these lines: "My squanderlust predecessor somehow neglected to destroy every pocket of prosperity and productivity left in this economy -- so I reckon it's up to me to finish that job."

When the actual Day of Reckoning arrives, one of three scenarios will play out:

*Sanity will seize our population and our chastened political class will restore the foundations of the pre-1913 (or, better yet, pre-1861) political system.

Yeah, I don't think so either, but it is a possibility.

*The productive elements of the population will divorce themselves from the parasitical ruling class and its client constituencies, eventually creating some kind of loose confederation. While the parasites won't surrender their host without a violent struggle, this is probably the best we can hope for.

*We'll see the Regime continue to inflate, spend, and regiment the population until we achieve the ne plus ultra of Keynesian economics: The government will achieve full employment by forcing all of us to build immense pyramids out of its useless, unwanted fiat currency.

(My sincere apologies for traducing the Three Stooges by comparing them to federal political appointees.)

26 comments:

Sans Authoritas
said...

"Trans-Orwellian." Nice...

Yes, we're seeing a lot of Orwellian terms flying around these days. "Toxic assets" are something the rest of us would call "liabilities." While we unwashed masses would use the term "mind-numbingly huge losses," Those Who Know Better use the euphemism, "negative growth."

Statists are the masters of euphemism. And the people who elect them drink it up. They have, as Stefan Molyneux points out, been on the receiving end of an abusive relationship with the State for a long time. And they love it. They thrive on abuse.

The only New Era we're headed for is a New Era of Waking Up And Smelling The Coffee, and tens of millions of people getting really, really angry.

I'm about to read the article, but before I do I have to protest the introductory picture and caption. As the Webmaster of ThreeStooges.net, I feel that I must strongly object to any comparison of the Three Stooges with politicians, as it is an insult to the Stooges. They may not have been the brightest bulbs in the marquee, but the Three Stooges were smarter (and a hell of a lot more honest) than any politician could ever hope to be.

Thanks for letting me rant. Now I will go back to read the article. ;D

Keeping in line with the 1984 references, I think the most important concept Orwell hit upon in describing how members in a well propagandized totalitarian state think is the notion of "Crimestop".

This is from the Newspeak dictionary online:

"crimestop - Orwell's definition: "The faculty of stopping short, as though by instinct, at the threshold of any dangerous thought. It includes the power of not grasping analogies, of failing to perceive logical errors, of misunderstanding the simplest arguments if they are inimical to Ingsoc, and of being bored or repelled by any train of thought which is capable of leading in a heretical direction. In short....protective stupidity."

This is acheived through the well managed "fights" between 2 allegedly competing groups, here in the US it is the left and the right in our political system. You choose a side and accept all the baggage included even against basic reason.

This is in large part why guys like Ron Paul who use outdated methods of communication (logical arguments, and human reason) simply make no sense to the average American. Rather than chop through the arguments Paul lays out, the average american will accept the download from Shawn Hannity and just call Ron Paul a "nut".

This is the goal of the two party system, it narrows the range of ideas for individuals to 2 (Which are really no different from one another). By having this false paradigm people accept more erosion of liberty than they would if there were but one ruling party.

For example, subscribers on the "conservative" spectrum don't see any inconsistancy with adhearing to US empire expansion and limited government (double think). Or torture and the Judeao-Christian view of human dignity.

But I am hopeful, as more and more people in light of the obvious reality of the kleptocracy that is over our country are begining to look for real answers.

I think this crisis is helping to get the states energized. Apparently this occurred in the early 90s but with no effect. As far as I can tell, the fedgov is lost. We should concentrate all our efforts at state level and reintroduce the state militia. Without a state militia (and with the 17th Amendment), states will continue to be run over by Washington. Until there is some teeth behind the words there will be no change.Louis

Will, Can I write a letter to the Chicago Sun Times requesting they add you as a columnist? :-) I'm so sick of the paper only presenting a daily dose of state and Obama worship. You'd be such a breath of fresh air.

Regardless, I find almost every article you write informative and witty.

Will, your posts are always informative, detailed, and your metaphors are quite comedic, which always induces a chortle or three every time I read one of your posts.

President Hope Change is certainly still convincing much of the electorate, especially the youthful segment, of his determination to germinate "hope" and manifest "change," not in government, mind ya, but in society itself. Surprised? Sigh...no, anybody who seeks the big picture can see this with ease, even within the public utterances of the political schemers themselves:

...we will act with the full force of the federal government [This Führer doesn't mince words, eh?] to ensure that the major banks that Americans depend on have enough confidence and enough money to lend even in more difficult times. And when we learn that a major bank has serious problems, we will hold accountable those responsible [government executive/legislative officials held accountable?? Not in my lifetime...sigh], force the necessary adjustments, provide the support [more largess distilled from ours and our children's future earnings and loaned by the Chinese and other nefarious governments] to clean up their balance sheets and assure the continuity of a strong, viable institution that can serve our people and our economy.

Good grief, Watson, the emperor couldn't be more naked about his regime's intentions if he streaked across the White House lawn (in daylight).

And I saw that Peter Schiff video myself on Youtube a few days ago. Although I have agreed wholeheartedly with Schiff's analyses of the economy from the get-go, I nevertheless tend to think that he's either extremely naïve or, perhaps, just doesn't want to risk strongly castigating the individual statists themselves, as opposed to the abstract State, publicly. Bernanke and Paulson being the sole exceptions, so far; he used to give a regular verbal beatdown on the Fed chairman and former Treasury Secretary fellas regularly.

In any event, he seems to think of bona fide socialists, whether the economic-centric variety or otherwise, as simply "misguided" and/or "ignorant" rather than cunning, oblique, and evasive and acting by design with a purpose in mind. True, government officials are quite adept at speaking euphemisms, of course, but these days their candor is becoming increasingly commonplace. Yet, most people seem to perceive other people as basically "good" and "well-meaning" folk. And to take their words (regardless of how monkey-simple clear) and the attendant action(s) as simply "misguided," "stupid," "insane," or some other colorful and meaningless descriptive blather.

With all that in mind, I find it exceedingly difficult to accept that Mr. Schiff, and many other highly intelligent folk like him, can be so amazingly naïve, judging by his own comments/remarks anyway. Does he not ever take into account a person's (and a gaggle of folks' - aka conspiratorial) agendas - philosophical, ideological, and/or religious? For instance, when he was talking to the Saudis on camera at the conference in Riyadh and explaining to that one Muhammadan how the Saudis were destroying our economy by loaning us money, so forth and so on...ZZZZzzzzZZZZ.

Gee, did it ever occur to him that possibly assisting in crashing the perceived protector of Israel's economy could be exactly what the Saudi government officials dream of in whatever way they can, assisted by elements within our own government? And does it ever occur to him that the Saudi people themselves are "heavily regulated," to put it lightly, by their own government?

It's bewildering to me. Perhaps, I've missed something along the way; it wouldn't be the first time.

Anyway, I have a question, Will. Have you ever considered doing a Youtube (or other video site) vblog or something similar? You'd be a real substantive addition to the cacophony of voices and blather in the videosphere überall.

Anon @ 6:44 -- Thanks so much for the kind words! If you could succeed in getting me a paying gig as a columnist anywhere, I'd name our next child after you, assuming that "Anonymous" isn't your actual name.

D.D., you've been away for a while, and your absence has been keenly felt.

I've long wanted to post some vlog-type commentaries on YouTube, but, to be candid, I'm dependent on the video production and editing skills of my 11-year-old. At some point we're going to try to stage a joint production, and when it's ready I'll give proper notice.

A quote from the SF Chron. This is the real deal.Operation ENDGAME as DHS calls it.

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/02/04/ED5OUPQJ7.DTLRule by fear or rule by law?Lewis Seiler,Dan HamburgMonday, February 4, 2008

U.S. Rep. Jane Harman, D-Venice (Los Angeles County) has come up with a new way to expand the domestic "war on terror." Her Violent Radicalization and Homegrown Terrorism Prevention Act of 2007 (HR1955), which passed the House by the lopsided vote of 404-6, would set up a commission to "examine and report upon the facts and causes" of so-called violent radicalism and extremist ideology, then make legislative recommendations on combatting it.

According to commentary in the Baltimore Sun, Rep. Harman and her colleagues from both sides of the aisle believe the country faces a native brand of terrorism, and needs a commission with sweeping investigative power to combat it.

A clue as to where Harman's commission might be aiming is the Animal Enterprise Terrorism Act, a law that labels those who "engage in sit-ins, civil disobedience, trespass, or any other crime in the name of animal rights" as terrorists. Other groups in the crosshairs could be anti-abortion protesters, anti-tax agitators, immigration activists, environmentalists, peace demonstrators, Second Amendment rights supporters ... the list goes on and on. According to author Naomi Wolf, the National Counterterrorism Center holds the names of roughly 775,000 "terror suspects" with the number increasing by 20,000 per month.

What could the government be contemplating that leads it to make contingency plans to detain without recourse millions of its own citizens?

Brother Grigg, you sound like you could use an early treatment. Trust Uni and you'll feel better. The government wants to help you. Just turn in our guns and keep spending money and everything will be ok.

"Neither Obama nor the gallery of trained seals called Congress is in charge of the public purse.... but the real economic power now resides with the Commissar for Official Counterfeiting, Ben Bernanke, and the Commissar for Fiscal Fraud, Tim Geithner."

(Will, do you ever feel like the voice of one, crying in the wilderness? Or like a Hawaiian shaman, casting dire spells against the inexorable lava of Kilauea?)

Not to forget Heinrich Paulson and Rahm Israel Emanuel, Mr. Shearson, Mr. Lehman, Mr. Goldman, and Mr. Sachs. Like I said before, dear friends, the Foxmans have been put in charge of our nation's hen-house.

And don't expect Obama to go out there and chase them off with a shotgun. No, Obama does not believe in firearms. Instead, when the chickens start to squawk and blood begins to flow, he will go out there in the night waving his handkerchief at the predators and saying with gentle dignity, "Shoo! Shoo!"

...."Oh Grandma," said Taxpayer Little Red Riding Hood, "what big teeth you have!" Replied the Wolfensohn, "Ah, my child, the better to gobble up everything you own! And everything you can possibly buy on credit, too! And then whatever your children and grandchildren may earn in the future, as well!"

"First, they ripped off the house-owners, and I did not speak up, because I was not a house-owner. Then, they bankrupted the stockholders, and I did not complain, because I owned no stock. Then, through inflation, they paupered those who held their assets in cash, and I did not speak out, because extra cash was something I had not seen for a long, long, time. Then,they asked the taxpayers to pay for all of it, and behold, as a taxpayer I could do nothing, because there was nobody left to be ripped off but us wretched taxpayers."

(With apologies to Pastor Martin Niemoller.)

I wonder if Niemoller could have imagined that some day the fascists and the communists would join hands and dance around the grave of the working class?

In the land of the blind the one eyed man is king. That explains the eye of Horus at the top of the pyramid on the dollar. The only new age we are heading into is a new dark age. The stupid human earth monkeys will be lucky to survive it.

Not that prudence is ever going to prevail -- the system does not provide incentives for it -- but fixing Usgov's mess would require a two-pronged approach.

Overseas, as Will mentioned, the empire would be obliged to close down. The troops would come home to defend the fifty states. Far fewer troops, weapons and bases would suffice.

Domestically, middle-class welfare would have to end. Our social commitment would be only to help the indigent. This means ending Social Security, while keeping SSI or something like it. It means ending Medicare, while keeping Medicaid (although in-kind health services at local charity clinics and hospitals would be preferable, so as to end cash payments entirely ).

But the likelihood of such constructive change is near-zero. Thanks to the Fed's 'elastic currency,' lawmakers are mesmerized by the illusion that federal spending comes from a bottomless well.

Accrual-basis deficits have been averaging $4 trillion a year, and probably will hit $6 trillion this year and next. Usgov inappropriately uses cash-basis accounting for two reasons: (1) Deficits look smaller when you don't reserve for promised benefits in the future; (2) Ultimately, for a sovereign which functions with legal tender laws and tax collection at gunpoint, cash flow is ALL THAT MATTERS. As long as today's gaping deficit can be plugged, Capitol Hill will survive till tomorrow.

For now, one should not doubt the ability of Usgov to raise these astronomical sums. As long as it can borrow for 10 years at 3 percent interest, funding is cheap. And printed money appears to be free.

The error is not seeing that this 'free' money will be paid for by inflation, which in turn will drive interest rates into double digits a few years down the road. At that point, deficits go exponential as borrowing escalates just to pay the rising interest tab on the accumulated debt.

As the CIA understands when it prints counterfeit Iranian currency, inflation is profoundly destabilizing. As Usgov turns into a fiscal basket case, numerous incentives arise. On a personal basis, for black market operations, tax evasion, rioting, crime, capital flight and emigration. On a state and regional basis, for rebellion and secession. One way or another, Usgov's days are limited.

Dishonest money is a death sentence for a nation-state. A question for the coroner will be whether Uncle Sam's demise was suicide, or bankster-inflicted homicide. Either way, nobody is going to miss the greedy, murderous old windbag.

Anonymous @ 12:11 pm - you said, "Accrual-basis deficits have been averaging $4 trillion a year, and probably will hit $6 trillion this year and next."

Whatcha worryin' about, doc? The answer is already before our eyes, in the form of Gideon Gono's $100-trillion Zimbabwean currency bill.

You said truly: "For now, one should not doubt the ability of Usgov to raise these astronomical sums." Indeed. Print up a nice crisp bill, pay off the national debt. Easy as that.

These leeches, you gotta give 'em credit for two things, imagination and big balls. You and me, we can't even imagine stealing that much money. And I guess nature must have endowed us only with very small naughty bits.

How old are you, Mr. Anon? If you live frugally and stay out of the path of bankers and politicians stampeding to the public trough, you might even live to see them stealing quadrillions.

And if you don't die laughing first, and hang around a few years more, it will be quintillions.

I would go on, but I can't count past five in Latin. I think the next one is SO much fun it was named after human intercourse.

Advice for today: Buy a wheelbarrow while you can still afford one. You'll need it some day as a wallet.

But look on the bright side though - the pickpockets at Coney Island will all have strokes and drop dead.

I submit that this Independence Day you're going to see a fourth possibility hit American political life like a neutron bomb.

Here it is (link below) and I promise it's exciting. The closest thing to this project (in terms of a Sovereign State attempting to enforce constitutional law) that's ever been attempted was Jefferson's attempt to have a State Grand Jury criminally indict the entire federal grand jury that had indicted Samuel Cabell for sedition.

As you know, Clay backed down on tariffs, Jefferson got busy with the duties of his new presidency, and the 'despised acts' sunsetted in 1801 anyway. The test was never completed; plus it was just one State attempting to flex its 9th and 10th Amendment muscles.

The America Again! project is We the People, on 535 fronts in our Sovereign States, putting the hammer down NOW. Starting THIS July 4th.

Given the short timeframe, this year we won't try to carry bills of information to the State Grand Jury yet; need to woodshed some DAs and State judges first. But we'll read the America Again! Declaration, have sign-ups for the local Citizens' Homeland Security Association (pursuant to a real militia; see Edwin Vieira's latest book for details), and just have excellent food, fun, and Independence Day fellowship.

This first year's America Again! rollout will be only as real for your US congressman or senator as YOU make it.

As I tell all my cynical fellow citizens...line up to sign up, or shut up.

545 PEOPLEBy Charlie ReesePoliticians are the only people in the world who create problems and then campaign against them.

Have you ever wondered, if both the Democrats and the Republicans are against deficits, WHY do we have deficits?

Have you ever wondered, if all the politicians are against inflation and high taxes, WHY do we have inflation and high taxes?

You and I don't propose a federal budget. The president does.

You and I don't have the Constitutional authority to vote on appropriations. The House of Representatives does.

You and I don't write the tax code, Congress does.

You and I don't set fiscal policy, Congress does.

You and I don't control monetary policy, theFederal Reserve Bank does.

One hundred senators, 435 congressmen, one president, and nine Supreme Court justices 545 human beings out of the 300 million are directly, legally, morally, and individually responsible for the domestic problems that plague this country.

I excluded the members of the Federal Reserve Board because that problem was created by the Congress. In 1913, Congress delegated its Constitutional duty to provide a sound currency to a federally chartered, but private, central bank.

I excluded all the special interests and lobbyists for a sound reason. They have no legal authority. They have no ability to coerce a senator, a congressman, or a president to do one cotton-picking thing. I don't care if they offer a politician $1 million dollars in cash.

The politician has the power to accept or reject it. No matter what the lobbyist promises, it is the legislator's responsibility to determine how he votes.

Those 545 human beings spend much of their energy convincing you that what they did is not their fault. They cooperate in this common con regardless of party.

What separates a politician from a normal human being is an excessive amount of gall. No normal human being would have the gall of a Speaker, who stood up and criticized the President for creating deficits. The president can only propose a budget. He cannot force the Congress to accept it.

The Constitution, which is the supreme law of the land, gives sole responsibility to the House of Representatives for originating and approving appropriations and taxes. Who is the speaker of the House? Nancy Pelosi. She is the leader of the majority party.

She and fellow House members, not the president, can approve any budget they want. If the president vetoes it, they can pass it over his veto if they agree to.

It seems inconceivable to me that a nation of 300 million can not replace 545 people who stand convicted -- by present facts -- of incompetence and irresponsibility. I can't think of a single domestic problem that is not traceable directly to those 545 people. When you fully grasp the plain truth that 545 people exercise the power of the federal government, then it must follow that what exists is what they want to exist.

If the tax code is unfair, it's because they want it unfair.

If the budget is in the red, it's because they want it in the red .

If the Army & Marines are in IRAQ , it's because they want them in IRAQ

If they do not receive social security but are on an elite retirement plan not available to the people, it's because they want it that way.

There are no insoluble government problems.

Do not let these 545 people shift the blame to bureaucrats, whom they hire and whose jobs they can abolish; to lobbyists, whose gifts and advice they can reject; to regulators, to whom they give the power to regulate and from whom they can take this power. Above all, do not let them con you into the belief that there exists disembodied mystical forces like "the economy," "inflation," or "politics" that prevent them from doing what they take an oath to do.

Those 545 people, and they alone, are responsible.

They, and they alone, have the power.

They, and they alone, should be held accountable by the people who are their bosses.

Provided the voters have the gumption to manage their own employees.

We should vote all of them out of office and clean up their mess!

Charlie Reese is a former columnist of the Orlando Sentinel Newspaper.

What you do with this article now that you have read it.......... Is up to you.

To Anonymous:I'm sorry that I may have given the illusion of insult to Mr. Grigg's son. I think I said that he would have to dumb down his presentation to the 3rd level. This would be well below his son's intelligence.

Did you hear the news from Zimbabwe? ==================================In Harare last night, Isaac Nkosamutango was walking home from work pushing a wheelbarrow of money - $759 billion, his day's wages - when he got robbed.

The thieves left the money and stole his wheelbarrow.

Finding himself outside a grocery and unable to carry his wages any further, Isaac spent them on a banana.